Lord Lister No. 0350: De opiumschuiver

The Windsor Club on Oxford Street hums with the low murmur of gentlemen sipping brandy beneath the glow of electric lamps, its large windows framing the bustling city beyond. In a corner, the imposing Lord William Aberdeen, a former boxer turned Vice‑President, watches the arrival of Jeffries Macmillan, a once‑cheerful man now reduced to a pale, hollow‑eyed figure. Their whispered conjecture—addiction, a secret grief, a lingering disease—sets an uneasy tone, hinting that the club’s polished façade may conceal a darker reality.

Bored with the stifling ambience, Lord Aberdeen leans toward his young secretary, Charly Brand, suggesting a stroll beyond the gilded walls to restore some vigor. Brand, eager to please, agrees, and the two men retreat into the night, their departure shrouded in the promise of a covert venture. Listeners are left wondering what secrets the streets may reveal and how the mysterious Macmillan’s plight might intertwine with the duo’s hidden agenda.